REMOVING fleeces from lambs can help boost growth rates, reduce the risk of flystrike and make flock management easier, according to Heiniger’s Hefin Rowlands.

Mr Rowlands, an experienced shearer, says shearing lambs during their first summer can increase growth rates by up to 20g a head.

“The best time varies between lowland and upland flocks, but the usual window is from the end of June to the beginning of October,” he said.

“Shearing lambs requires the same professionalism and attention to animal welfare as shearing ewes. Whether farmers are hiring a professional shearer or doing the job themselves on farm, it is important to use well-serviced equipment.”

Mr Rowlands said there are several additional benefits to shearing lambs during this period, including reducing the risk of flystrike, keeping lambs cleaner, and preventing them from becoming snagged or tangled in thick undergrowth.

The method for shearing lambs is no different to shearing adult sheep. Shearing towards the end of summer or early autumn can also mean that, the following spring, hoggs carry less wool on their backs, reducing the risk of them becoming cast because of heavy fleeces.

“Shearing lambs also makes them easier to manage and transport,” Mr Rowlands added. “With a smaller, shorn lamb, you can get more on a trailer.”

If lambs are shorn late in the season, when temperatures are falling and heavy rain is more likely, Mr Rowlands said housing them afterwards can help with acclimatisation. However, this is less likely to be needed if shearing takes place before the end of August.

“If shearing later, it is sometimes beneficial to leave the belly wool on because it offers insulation when the lamb lies down, especially in wet conditions,” he said.

With wool prices rising, Mr Rowlands said there may also be financial gains from having more wool to sell.

“If shorn well, with the right equipment and at the right time, lambswool can command a premium,” he said.

“Having professional shearers, or the training to shear accurately yourself, is important, as is using a well-maintained, quality handpiece with factory-sharp combs and cutters.”

Caption: Shearing lambs can help increase growth rates by up to 20g a head.

A CALL to allow a Pembrokeshire farm to keep welfare facilities to care for rare breed breeding Tamworth pigs has been given the go-ahead.

In an application to Pembrokeshire County Council, Sharron Nicolas, through agent Hayston Developments & Planning Ltd, sought a certificate of lawfulness permission for the creation of a welfare flat within a previously-approved agricultural building, plus a rear lean-to extension and the erection of two further sheds at Fairybank Fields Farm, Bethesda, near Clynderwen.

An application for a certificate of lawfulness allows an applicant to keep a development if they can provide proof of occupancy or use, without any enforcement taking place, over a prolonged period.

The previous agricultural building application was granted back in 2003.

A supporting statement accompanying the application said the two-level welfare unit in the 2003-granted shed “contains the necessary elements to allow overnight stays which are essential when the pigs are farrowing.”

It added: “Mr Allan and Mrs Sharron Nicholas have been owners of Fairybank Fields since 1998. Unfortunately, Mr Nicolas died in February 2025. Although managing the farm at Bethesda, they lived at Pleasant View, Cold Blow, Narberth meaning a round trip of some 12 miles per visit – a visit which was required on a daily basis because of the need to feed and generally care for their animals – which were and still are rare breed pigs together with a number of beef cattle.

“It is essential that the pigs require continuous care when farrowing or when there are other pressures on animal health. When such occasions occurred, it was the practice of Mr Nicholas to spend the night at the farm and to use the welfare provision.”

It said Mr Nicholas would have spent approximately three months’ worth of nights (circa 90 nights) staying over at Fairybank Fields – a period of some 12 years when the bedroom above had been created to late 2024 when his brother assisted Mrs Nicholas in caring for the pigs as Mr Nicholas was too ill.

It went on to say: “Whilst the principal activity at the Farm is the breeding of the rare breed, the Tamworth Pig of which there are only currently 290 breeding sows in the UK, Mr and Mrs Nicholas also have had beef cattle on their farm and Mrs Nicholas intends to re-start that element in 2026.”

An officer report recommending approval said a site visit had been undertaken finding no evidence of the unit being occupied as a separate residential dwelling, nor as a primary residence.

It said a range of evidence was submitted in support of the application, including a detailed timeline, aerial imagery and multiple witness statements “which consistently indicate that the rear extension to Building 1 was constructed circa 2008, Shed 2 was completed in September 2012 and Shed 3 was erected in 2015”.

It said historic aerial photographs and witness statements demonstrated “on the balance of probability, that the operational development was substantially completed well in excess of four years prior to the submission of the application and has not been subject to any material interruption,” considered to be lawful by virtue of immunity from enforcement action.

It was granted approval on that basis.

A WELSH GOVERNMENT minister has defended his approach to tackling bovine TB after being accused of lacking ambition by Conservative farming spokesman Andrew RT Davies.

Mr Davies challenged Rural Resilience and Sustainability Minister Llyr Gruffydd in the Senedd on Tuesday (Jun 23), claiming the government’s latest position contained “lots of reviews” but “little substance”.

He warned that bovine TB remained a major concern for farming communities and urged the minister to bring forward a clearer plan to eradicate the disease.

Mr Davies said: “Bovine TB is devastating for the countryside, yet for the past 20 years those in power have let rural communities down.

“Plaid Cymru ministers must get a grip of officials. They must not be allowed to curtail ambition to tackle this terrible disease.”

He added that the Welsh Conservatives would support the minister if he brought forward a “positive vision” for tackling bovine TB.

Responding, Mr Gruffydd said the government needed to wait for advice from the technical advisory group before deciding its next steps.

He said: “They have been charged with bringing forward concrete proposals on the way ahead.

“I think we wait for the experts to speak; we look at the evidence, we look at the science that they provide us, and then we get a grip and take action.”

Bovine TB remains one of the most divisive issues in Welsh farming. Farmers have long argued that the disease causes major financial and emotional pressure, while governments have faced difficult decisions over cattle controls, testing, wildlife management and disease eradication policy.

The exchange comes as farming unions continue to call for stronger measures to reduce the spread of the disease, while ministers say future policy must be guided by evidence and expert advice.